According to the HUffPo report:
Meet CME Group. Last fall, Forbes revealed "The Four
Companies That Control the 147 Companies That Own Everything," in which
contributor Brendan Coffey argues that "the real power to control the
world" lies not with the likes of Wal-Mart and Bank of America, but with
the select few companies that control the indexes that rank these corporations.
CME Group, owner of the Dow Jones Indexes, is one of these four companies, which
is why it is important for all of us to get to know this company, how it makes
its billions, and how it impacts us all.
The "CME" in "CME Group" stands for the
Chicago Mercantile Exchange, which has special significance for those of us who
live in Chicago. We're familiar with "The Merc" and the Chicago Board
of Trade, the two iconic commodities futures exchanges comprising Chicago's
Wall Street. (And if you're not from Chicago, you've likely seen the trading
floor of Board of Trade -- featured in the classic Ferris Bueller's Day Off).
CME Group formed relatively recently, when the Mercantile Exchange bought the
Board of Trade in 2007. But a five-year growth and acquisition spree has
secured its status as one of the four masters of the corporate universe.
So what does CME Group do, exactly? Maybe the word
"derivative" rings a bell. Derivatives are the risky financial
products (think credit default swaps) that brought the economy crashing down.
The exchanges Mostly, these exchanges operate as giant casinos where thousands
of ultra-wealthy traders and speculators go to place bets on the rise and fall
of the price of commodities, including oil, gold, currencies, interest rates,
and other exotic financial products. Like
more traditional casinos, CME Group makes its money by taking a cut of each and
every bet. …
Find out more at http://www.huffingtonpost.com/elizabeth-parisian/cme-group_b_1472694.html?ref=chicago
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